Effect and Economic Analysis on the UV/Ozone Decolorization of a Dye-finishing Wastewater and Commercial Dyes ¡V Reactive Orange 13 and Blue 19

by Liu, Bo-Wen

Abstract (Summary)

Currently in Taiwan¡¦s textile-dying industry, sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) is popularly used as a decolorization oxidant. In order to surely meet the effluent color regulation of 550 ADMI (American Dye Manufactures Institute), excessive dosage of sodium hyperchlorite is commonly used, which results in the increase of residual chloride and the accumulation of toxic chlorinated compound in the environment. This study probes into the characteristics of substitute oxidant for sodium hypochlorite to avoid the production of toxic products. The study includes decolorization efficiency evaluation, economical analysis and feasibility of commercial application.
This study adopts ozone as an oxidant and ultraviolet light as the oxidant enhancer for the purpose of preventing the occurrence of secondary pollution products like trihalomethane from the sodium hyperchlorite application. Literature review indicates that there are several studies for reaction mechanisms of oxidation and disinfection of ozone and ultraviolet light for decolorization and the conclusions reveal much promising results.
There are three topics in this study, which are:
Topic 1: Feasibility study. This study focuses on whether the effluent color concentration of the treatment process meets the color effluent standard or not. A 3.5 L volume reactor was used in this section.
Topic 2: Influencing factor analysis. A 14 L volume reactor was adopted for analyzing the influencing factors for decolorization and for comparing the differences in treatment efficiencies between a dye finishing plant effluent and two commercial dyestuff samples.
Topic 3: Economic analysis. The analysis focuses on economic comparison between NaOCl and UV/Ozone processes for effluent decolorization. Analysis results of the investment cost, operation/maintenance expense, and investment return duration are presented in this section. A 50 L volume reactor was used to achieve the evaluation for this part.
First topic of this study examined some operating parameters for treating effluent from the biological and chemical coagulation units of a dye-finishing wastewater treatment plant using the UV/Ozone technique to meet an effluent regulation of 550 ADMI values could be reduced from approximately 4,000 to 200 ADMI in an hour using the UV/Ozone technique.
The results show that higher color removal efficiency could be achieved at pH values around 3 as compared with higher pH values of around 7 and 10. This might be due to the fact that the predominant ozone molecules at lower pH values are more selective to certain chromophore molecules in wastewater, despite the fact that hydroxyl radicals are predominant at higher pH values and have a stronger oxidation capability than ozone.
The UV light used in this study emitted from the experimental lamp can excite oxygen and water molecules to produce ozone molecules and hydroxyl radicals that can then increase decolorization rate. The findings of this investigation reveal that the proposed UV/Ozone treatment scheme has potential for development into an environmentally friendly decolorization approach for dye finishing wastewater treatment.
The second topic is to investigate the feasibility of applying UV/Ozone techniques to reduce color content caused by two commercial reactive dyes (Orange-13 and Blue-19). Bench experiments were performed using a 14-L reactor. Controlling factors including pH value, dosage of ozone, reaction time, and UV intensity were evaluated to obtain the optimal operating parameters. Results from this study show that the ozone dosage and pH value dominated the effects on the decolorization process. However, UV intensity shows relatively insignificant effects. Results also indicate that the color content could be reduced from 2,000 to 200 ADMI within a reaction time of 30 minutes with a total ozone dosage of 100 mg/L.
This study shows that pH values of approximately 3 and 10 favored the decolorization of the studied Dye Blue-19 and Orange-13, respectively. This was due to the effects that molecular ozone and hydroxyl radicals had significant oxidative power at low and high pH, respectively. Moreover, molecular ozone was more selective to certain dye structures during its oxidation process. This also caused the effect that pH value played an important role on color removal. Kinetic analyses show that the decolorization reactions of Dye Orange-13 and Blue-19 followed a first-order decolorization model. Experimental results also indicate that the degree of decolorization was primarily proportional to the ozone dosage. Results from this study provide us an insight into the characteristics and mechanisms of decolorization by UV/ozone technique. Results will also aid in designing a system for field application of dye finishing plants.
According to the results from the third topic, for a dye finishing plant of wastewater flow rate of 800CMD (m3/day), the capital cost of equipment and related establishment as well as amendment is about US$ 116,300, and the monthly operation and maintenance cost is US$ 4,030. In this study, ozone was used as a substitute decolorizing oxidant to treat the effluent from the secondary biological and physical/chemical treatment plant. Because the current cost for the decolorization oxidant (NaOCl) is approximately US$ 5,700 per month, the monthly saving, adopting the decolorization system using UZ/Ozone, will be US$ 1,670. The investment return period will be over 7 years and is not attractive to the plant owners. However, to prevent the accumulated toxicity of chloride compounds in the environment and to promote the desires of investment on the advanced decolorization technique, a favorable tax deduction policy needs to be applied.